The Creekside Discovery Centre is a natural habitat in

Deptford Deptford is an area on the south bank of the River Thames in southeast London, in the Royal Borough of Greenwich and London Borough of Lewisham. It is named after a Ford (crossing), ford of the River Ravensbourne. From the mid 16th century ...

in the

London Borough of Lewisham Lewisham ( ) is a London boroughs, London borough in south-east London, England. It forms part of Inner London. The principal settlement of the borough is Lewisham. The local authority is Lewisham London Borough Council, based in Catford. The ...

. It is owned by the National Grid and managed by the Creekside Education Trust. Formerly a gas works,Galilee, Beatrice. “Voice in the Wilderness”. ''

Building Design Building design, also called architectural design, refers to the broadly based architectural, engineering and technical applications to the design of buildings. All building projects require the services of a building designer, typically a licen ...

'' (January 17, 2003), p.11. the centre is a

brownfield Brownfield is previously-developed land that has been abandoned or underused, and which may carry pollution, or a risk of pollution, from industrial use. The specific definition of brownfield land varies and is decided by policy makers and l ...

habitat incorporating the only existing sloping beach into

Deptford Creek Deptford is an area on the south bank of the River Thames in southeast London, in the Royal Borough of Greenwich and London Borough of Lewisham. It is named after a ford of the River Ravensbourne. From the mid 16th century to the late 1 ...

.Archer and Yarham. ”British Gas site beside Deptford Creek”. ''Nature Conservation in Lewisham'' (London: 2000), p.102. Other habitats on the site include a

pond A pond is a small, still, land-based body of water formed by pooling inside a depression (geology), depression, either naturally or artificiality, artificially. A pond is smaller than a lake and there are no official criteria distinguishing ...

, constructed in a project coordinated by the Creekside Education Trust in partnership with

Lewisham College Lewisham College is a further education college in the London Borough of Lewisham, south-east London. It was established in 1990, having previously been known as SELTEC (South East London College of Technology) since the early 1970s, which was run ...

, and a sandbank, built in 2001.Bertrand, Nick. ”Nick’s mission to safeguard future of our ‘hidden gems’”. ''The Docklands'' (August 10, 2011), p.10.

History

The Creekside Centre became a

nature reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, funga, or features of geologic ...

as a result of an agreement between the Creekside Renewal Project and

British Gas British Gas (trading as Scottish Gas in Scotland) is an energy and home services provider in the United Kingdom. It is the trading name of British Gas Services Limited and British Gas New Heating Limited, both subsidiaries of Centrica. Serving ...

, the latter was unable to build on the site due to the existence of a large-diameter gas pipe on the site. In 2015 the Friend’s of Creekside scheme was launched to help fund the charity, develop on-site facilities, and raise local awareness of the nature reserve. The site contains a 250kg

propeller A propeller (often called a screw if on a ship or an airscrew if on an aircraft) is a device with a rotating hub and radiating blades that are set at a pitch to form a helical spiral which, when rotated, exerts linear thrust upon a working flu ...

from a former Scottish fishing boat, the Northern Star.

Wildlife

Small-flowered catchfly at Creekside Discovery Centre

Historically the site has been associated with the

black redstart The black redstart (''Phoenicurus ochruros'') is a small passerine bird in the genus ''Phoenicurus''. Like its relatives, it was formerly classed as a member of the thrush family (Turdidae), but is now known to be an Old World flycatcher (Muscica ...

, although

habitat destruction Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss or habitat reduction) occurs when a natural habitat is no longer able to support its native species. The organisms once living there have either moved elsewhere, or are dead, leading to a decrease ...

in the wider area has meant they are no longer present. In 2011

sand martins The sand martin (''Riparia riparia''), also known as collared sand martin or common sand martin, and in the Americas as the bank swallow, is a migratory passerine bird in the swallow family Hirundinidae. It has a wide range in summer, embracing ...

began nesting in the sandbank on the site. Two nationally rare species of wasps have been found on the site; the spider-hunting wasp ''

Auplopus carbonarius ''Auplopus carbonarius'' is a spider wasp of the family Pompilidae. Uniquely among the British group it constructs a nest of barrel-shaped cells in which spiders are stored and the larvae develop. The British common name is sometimes given as the ...

'' and the mason wasp '' Microdynerus exilis''. The Creekside Discovery Centre is the only site in London on which the critically endangered small-flowered catchfly, a wildflower on the

Plantlife Plantlife is a wild plant conservation charity. , it manages 24 nature reserves around the United Kingdom. HM King Charles III is patron of the charity. History Plantlife was founded in 1989. Its first president was Professor David Bellamy ...

Red List, has been identified. Across the surrounding conservation area, 300 species of wildflower have been identified.

Architecture

The original plans to develop an educational facility on the site involved a floating centre located in the creek itself. The eventual building design built was a timber framed, cedar-clad building, incorporating a brown roof was constructed in 2002 at a cost of £500,000.

Events

The Creekside Centre provides educational sessions for local schools, guided walks along Deptford Creek, special events for the public, and venue hire. In 2012 the site hosted a performance of the ''

Odyssey The ''Odyssey'' (; ) is one of two major epics of ancient Greek literature attributed to Homer. It is one of the oldest surviving works of literature and remains popular with modern audiences. Like the ''Iliad'', the ''Odyssey'' is divi ...

'' by local theatre group Teatro Vivo.

Funding

The Creekside Centre has received funding from various sources including the City Bridge Trust. Since the autumn of 2020 the centre has received funding grants through a partnership with the company constructing the

Thames Tideway Tunnel The Thames Tideway Tunnel is a deep-level sewer along the tidal section of the River Thames in London, running from Acton in the west to Abbey Mills in the east, where it joins the Lee Tunnel which connects to Beckton Sewage Treatment Wor ...

.Creekside Discovery Centre
Thames Tideway. Retrieved: 3 November 2023.

References

{{reflist Nature reserves in the London Borough of Lewisham Deptford 2001 establishments in England